Ep. 282 You Made A Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi — The Stacks Book Club (Sam Sanders)

Podcaster and journalist Sam Sanders returns to discuss You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi for The Stacks Book Club. In our conversation of this romance novel, we wonder if the book actually qualifies as such under the rules of romance novels. We also discuss how the story feels like real life because it mirrors the messiness of actual love stories, who we are rooting for, and we brainstorm casts for the upcoming screen adaptation.
There are spoilers on today’s episode.

Be sure to listen to the end of today’s episode to find out what our book club pick will be for September 2023.

LISTEN NOW

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Overcast | Stitcher | Transcript

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

Connect with Sam: Instagram | Twitter | Into It | Vibe Check Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.


The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club – August 2023

The Stacks’ August book club selection is You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi, a Nigerian author with a fresh take on the romance novel. The book follows as Feyi Adekola re-enters the dating world after losing her husband in a car accident five years ago. Torn between the past and future and searching for answers and a second chance at love, Feyi finds exciting new prospects which are complicated beyond her wildest dreams. You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty is a messy and deeply alive novel about second chances and putting yourself first. The book was a 2023 NAACP Image Award nominee; set to be adapted to the screen by Michael B. Jordan’s Outlier Society.

We will discuss You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi on Wednesday, August 30th. You can find out who our guest will be by listening to our August 2nd episode. If you’d like even more discussion around the book, consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Get your copy of our August book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.


To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.

Unabridged: Bubbles with Tia Williams

For today’s Unabridged we’re joined by bestselling novelist Tia Williams to talk about her newest book Seven Days in June, in which two rendezvousing writers rekindle a 15 year-old flame. We discuss the inspiration behind the book, the rules of romance, and being Black in romantic fiction. We also hear how Tia’s writing skills as a magazine beauty editor translated to novel-writing.

*This episode is exclusive to members of The Stacks Pack on patreon. To join this community, get inside access to the show, and listen now, click the link below.

JOIN THE STACKS PACK TO LISTEN

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find what we talked about on Amazon.


Connect with Tia: Instagram | Twitter | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.


The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — October 2021

Last month we read a very serious very heavy book, so this month we’re going in a little bit of a lighter direction. We’re taking on classic romance (ish) novel, Waiting to Exhale by Terry McMillan.

Waiting to Exhale is novel about four women who rely on each other when the men in their lives prove they really ain’t it. It’s full of humor and heartbreak and a collection of characters you won’t be able to forget. Waiting to Exhale was written in 1992 and changed the ways books and pop culture interacted, especially after the realest of the 1995 film of the same title.

We will be discussing Waiting to Exhale by Terry McMillan on Wednesday, October 27th. You can find out who our guest will be for that discussion by listening to the podcast on October 6th. If you’d like even more discussion around the book consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Order your copy of our October book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.


To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.

Ep. 178 Emergency Contact by Mary H. K. Choi — The Stacks Book Club (Juliet Litman)

It is The Stacks Book Club day, and we are discussing Emergency Contact by Mary H. K. Choi. To help us talk about this YA romance we have brought back the wonderful Juliet Litman, host of the Bachelor Party and Jam Session podcasts, as well as head of development at The Ringer. Today we talk about men who are not emotionally available, important messages for young people, and the acknowledgement section in books.
There are spoilers on today’s episode.

Be sure to listen to the end of today’s episode to find out our book club pick for September!

LISTEN NOW

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Overcast | Stitcher

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with Juliet: Twitter | Instagram | The Ringer

Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.


The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — August 2021

To close out the summer we’re keeping it light around here with a young adult (or maybe new adult) romance novel. Our August pick is Emergency Contact the debut novel from Mary H. K. Choi. If Mary’s name sounds familiar its because she was a guest on The Stacks earlier in 2021, check out our conversation here.

In Emergency Contact we meet Penny and Sam. Penny is a college freshman trying to figure it all out. Sam is a 21 year old feeling stuck and lost which working day and night at the bakery he lives in. They meet in a less than adorable fashion and exchange numbers, they begin to text and then become digitally inseparable, without seeing each other in real life. The characters in Emergency Contact are complex and unlikeable in the most relatable ways. Ultimately this is a story of falling apart and trying to hold on to something or someone until you find your way.

We will be discussing Emergency Contact by Mary H. K. Choi on Wednesday, August 25th. You can find out who our guest will be for that discussion by listening to the podcast on August 4th. If you’d like even more discussion around the book consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Order your copy of our August book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.


To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.

Ep. 124 Finding Your Future Self with Liara Tamani

Young Adult author Liara Tamani is our guest today, and we discuss her newest book All the Things We Never Knew. Liara shares how she came to write for young people, the ways she finds authenticity in her characters, why social media isn’t for her, and the ways school curriculum doesn’t always serve students.

The Stacks Book Club selection for August is Sula by Toni Morrison, we will discuss the book with Brit Bennett on August 26th.

LISTEN NOW

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Overcast | Stitcher

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Connect with Liara: Instagram|Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.


The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — February 2020

In honor of Valentine’s day and the month of love, we’re getting a little romantic and a little sexy this February. We’re trying our hand at a our first romance novel, and reading one of the most controversial books of 2019. Should be fun!

First up on February 12th we’re talking romance when we read The Hating Game by Sally Thorne. The novel is a romantic comedy about two work place rivals who can’t stand each other. This novel is a great place to start if you’re new to romance (like us), or if you’re a professional reader of love stories.

On February 26th we’re talking sex and desire with Lisa Taddeo’s controversial book Three Women. The book follows three women; their lives, their relationships, and their trauma and how that has shaped who they are. Its an in depth look at these women and the worlds they inhabit.

As always, we want to hear from you, so please reach out with your thoughts, questions, and things you want to hear discussed on the podcast. You can email us at thestackswithtraci@gmail.com, comment on this post, or reach out through Instagram @thestackspod.

Order your copies of our February books on Amazon or IndieBound:


To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks received a copy of Three Women from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. For more information click here.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.